Tammy Baldwin Silent on Tomah VA Medical Center Scandal

[Madison, Wis.] – Today marks the 45th day that Senator Tammy Baldwin has remained silent on the Tomah VA Center scandal and her massive cover-up. Details were published by the Center for Investigative Reporting on January 9 that indicate Baldwin received a report from the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General in August, 2014.

The report highlighted unusual prescription practices by Tomah VA Center caretakers – which resulted in the deaths of three veterans. A former employee of the Tomah VA Center, Ryan Honl, repeatedly contacted Baldwin’s office with similar reports of negligence, only to be ignored and told to remain silent. Baldwin blamed one of her staffers for her failure to act on the VA report and corresponding claims from Honl. The staffer was terminated and offered a severance package in exchange for signing a nondisclosure agreement.The Republican Party of Wisconsin responded by filing a Complaint with the US Senate Select Committee on Ethics – accusing Baldwin of appropriating taxpayer dollars as hush money to fund the staffer’s payout.

Baldwin has refused to answer questions, hiding behind big DC lawyer Mark Elias who has been dubbed national Democrats’ “go-to” attorney for serious scandals. Baldwin’s silence has only amplified the demand for answers.

Just last week, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Editorial Board wrote: “She needs to explain why her office sat for months on an inspection report that found officials at the Tomah medical center were prescribing high amounts of opiate pain pills to patients… Baldwin needs to step up and offer a full explanation of what happened.”

“Tammy Baldwin needs to stop hiding and finally answer serious questions about her role in this scandal and attempted cover-up,” said Joe Fadness, Executive Director of the Republican Party of Wisconsin.